Food for both body and mind

Whatever happened to Shiraz?

We went to dinner last night at Shiraz, the Iranian restaurant in the Crowne Plaza. Shiraz is usually always a safe bet with good food and the best view in town. Not last night.

The food wasn't just bad. It was inedible. We got our food, took a bite each from our kebabs and that was it. We asked for the bill. The waiter didn't act surprised. Never asked "is there something wrong with the food?" He just got us the bill as if it was perfectly normal for people to leave without eating their food. Thank god for the Privilege Club card which gave us 50% off the tab.

We didn't let the bad experience ruin our night and headed to Second Cup which was packed as usual. The coffee was good. The atmosphere was great. We made the most out of it and managed to salvage the rest of our night out.

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Al Fair

Al Fair used to be my favorite supermarket chain in Oman, but unfortunately they're in a very bad state right now. It's surprising that since they've given the management to the people who run the Spinney's chain in Dubai the stores didn't improve. In fact they got worse. The MQ store looks great. Asthetically, it's probably the best supermarket in Oman. But it's not a place to do your full grocery shopping anymore. I go there to buy bread and cheese, plus some European products that I can't get anywhere else. There's no variety of anything else anymore, and the prices are much higher than the competition. And don't get me started on the weird magazine stands.

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Books

The reason I mentioned Al Fair is because I was at their CBD store yesterday and I ended up buying 3 books. Of all the places to get a good selection of book! I was so surprised. I dunno who their supplier is. The price stickers say JAS Books. Why doesn't JAS Books, whoever they are, open a proper bookstore of their own if they have such a nice selection like what they display in Al Fair? The prices weren't too bad either. I'll write about the books later. I've been back in a reading groove lately and I have a few of books to write about.